It doesn’t matter what my uninformed mind thinks or my fickle emotions feel God’s sovereignty and love are the real Truth. But what if I don’t feel like praising Him? Doesn’t that make me a hypocrite? Not at all. Why? Because it focuses me on the real Truth of who He is, and not the false truth of situations. But over the years, I’ve developed it as a habit-singing, humming, quietly thanking God throughout the day. As a closet Eeyore, praise does not come naturally for me. In our hurried culture, this gives my soul time to hear, understand and adore Him.ĥ. Instead of plowing through the Bible in a year, I’ll spend time each morning reading just a few verses, chewing on them, meditating on them, sometimes discussing them with Him. I didn’t fall in love with my wife that way. I listen to Him mostly through His Word, but not quickly or superficially. I talk to Him through prayer, praise and singing. Falling in love with God, or re-falling in love, is the same principle. She fell in love with me because she has no taste (but that’s another matter). I fell in love with my wife by listening and talking deeply with her. Listen to God’s love that adores and wants to help.Ĥ. Don’t listen to the lies that hate and want to destroy. So who is left to believe the slanderer? Just us. After Christ’s great sacrifice, God no longer sees what’s wrong with us. In fact, the very term devil means “slanderer.” So who believes the slanderer’s accusations? God? Hardly. The devil is called the accuser of the brethren. The next time you attend a wedding, pay attention to the bride as she enters, but also sneak a peek back to the groom and remember … that is exactly what the Lord feels for you every second of your life.ģ. Saint John of the Cross and other great mystics got this. He looks upon us with the same passion and ardor as a bridegroom does for his bride on their wedding day. Christ’s sacrifice for us is so complete that at least 18 times in the Bible we are referred in one way or another as His bride. Remember that God loves you more than you do. That only trivializes Christ’s sacrifice by indicating you still have to suffer a little because His work wasn’t quite enough.Ģ. No time-outs and standing in the corner for bad behavior allowed. And when you fail? Confess it, take another gulp, and get back to your feet. Don’t be shy, or snub Him by only accepting part of His gift. Instead of groveling at its foot, get over yourself (and your failures), embrace Christ’s full forgiveness, and move forward. The cross is not the end of our experience with God but the beginning. So how do we return to loving God as a Person as opposed to being followers of a dry and dusty religion? Here are five steps that have worked for me:ġ. Of particular concern (and why I wrote the book The Jesus Experience), I’ve noticed the love of Jesus in older saints growing stale while many in the upcoming generation see Christianity as an outdated philosophy. As an author and filmmaker, I spend lots of time asking people questions.
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